Shake Down ride, confidence shaken

300km brevet on the horizon next weekend, so with Saturday the only break in a rainy weekend, I set off at 7am for a 100 mile ride on my old "hilly hundred" route: 100 miles and 7300 ft of climbing.

I made it to Crockett in 4 hrs, had a light lunch at the very likable Valona market and deli in town. But on the way home, starting at about Inspiration Pt, I really ran out of gas. I could only manage 30 or 45 minutes at a time without an off-the-bike rest. A little worrying, considering next weekend I'd be doing 187 miles. Later that night, I looked back at some of my notes from years past. Turns out I'm not eating enough on my rides! I'm averaging 170 calories per hour, whereas I used to regularly consume 230 or 250/hr on brevets. As my wife reminded me, less-than-sufficient food really doesn't work for me, so I'm optimistic next weekend will work out.

California budget crisis: leadership crisis

A tidy summary online at the New York Times this evening re California's continuing budget woes:

The roots of California’s inability to address its budget woes are statutory and political. The state, unlike most others, requires a two-thirds majority vote in the Legislature to pass budgets and tax increases. And its process for creating voter initiatives hamstrings the budget process by directing money for some programs while depriving others of cash.

In a Legislature dominated by Democrats, some of whom lean far to the left, leaders have been unable to gather enough support from Republican lawmakers, who tend on average to be more conservative than the majority of California’s Republican voters and have unequivocally opposed all tax increases.

And then there is Governor Schwarzenegger, whose budget woes far outweigh those of his predecessor, Gray Davis, whom he drummed from office in a 2003 recall that stemmed from the state’s fiscal problems at the time. The governor has failed to muster votes among lawmakers in his own party, whom he often opposes on ideological grounds, resulting in more scorn from Democrats.

(source)

While the Governor is not blameworthy in isolation, it is ironic, as noted by the Times, that he replaced Gray Davis because of the state's budget troubles. What has Governor Schwarzenegger done in the meantime to resolve the issue that launched him into office? Has he spent any meaningful time really leading, educating Californians on what the options are for managing state revenue inflows and outflows in a more viable manner? No. Opportunity squandered. Leadership ducked.